Manchester City put three goals past a disciplined Sunderland side to move closer to Arsenal at the top of the Premier League
It took Josko Gvardiol a good second to realise he had scored for Manchester City against Sunderland. His momentum from jumping and heading in from a corner had left him facing away from the goal, but he may also have been remembering last week when Phil Foden delivered an identical corner and Gvardiol sent the ball back towards the corner flag.
It didn’t matter too much against Leeds as that ball ended up winning a corner on the other side of the pitch that Gvardiol knocked in when Nico O’Reilly’s effort was saved, but it showed obvious if basic evidence of weekly improvement. Pep Guardiola wants to see his side getting better with each game and will have been particularly pleased to see his centre-back finding his groove.
Behind the manager in the dugout, set-piece recruit James French can also afford to be satisfied. The sound of bashing keyboards had been growing as City were the only team in the league not to have scored from set-pieces in early November, with questions asked of the man who arrived from Liverpool in the summer.
In each of the last three matches now, City have scored from a corner – and it could have been more if Gvardiol has met Foden’s take better last week. Nonetheless, Erling Haaland being marked out of a game matters less if set-pieces become an important weapon in Guardiola’s armoury.
To Sunderland’s credit, they did well with Haaland. The Norwegian cut a frustrated figure as he was awarded next to no space; seconds before Gvardiol headed home, referee Andy Madley had stepped in to warn the Norwegian of being too physical from a corner.
Sunderland had done pretty well with City in the opening half-hour, restricting them to potshots from outside the box as the final step of each attack was too heavy. Unfortunately for the visitors, Ruben Dias stepped up and slapped home a shot that deflected in past Robin Roefs to give City the lead, and four minutes later Gvardiol added a second.
There was a bit of luck to Dias’s goal and certainly fortune for City in the title race. Hours after Arsenal had lost to Aston Villa with both of their first-choice centre-backs missing due to injury, City’s partnership had moved them towards three points.
City will take it though, just as they took the six points from two game last week where they conceded six goals and just like they took the wins earlier in the season when the set-pieces weren’t coming. Guardiola has enough experience with winning league titles to know that perfection isn’t possible in a 38-game season, but City will certainly take being two points off top spot with their level of improvement.
There was even learning from the last two second-half showings that have seen City unnecessarily pegged back. Sunderland still caused a few wobbles, with Granit Xhaka’s shot cannoning back off the inside of the post from a corner before Nico Gonzalez hacked away, and a few other moments that left Guardiola with his head in his hands.
However, as the away team went forward it belatedly opened up space in their side and Rayan Cherki took advantage to delicious effect with a number of silky runs before he produced a rabona cross for Phil Foden to head home a third. Another two assists show how well the France international is settling into the team this year and he was serenaded off by the City fans as one of five changes that Guardiola made in the second half with Real Madrid and Crystal Palace next week in mind.
Three points, three goals and a clean sheet makes for a satisfying afternoon, and Arsenal losing makes it even better for Guardiola. It took everyone more than a second this season to deem City as title contenders following their dodgy start, and some still aren’t convinced after the goals they have shipped.
As long as City keep watching the ball drop into the net of their opponents, they won’t care who put it there or how.
